'Foreign' Policy: Neelabh Mishra

The prime minister has always been bullish about pumping foreign corporatefunds into nearly all sectors of the Indian economy. It is no small irony,that he is the same man who is trying to stoke the xenophobic fears of themiddle class by questioning the foreign support—if any—for a popularcampaign born of people's concern about nuclear safety.

The nuclear plant in question, Koodankulam, has been built with foreign(Russian) support. There is also that seminal nuclear deal with the hegemonof our time, the US. Granted, the PM must welcome foreign support intechnology, in which India obviously lags behind developed nations. Wherehe's remiss is in seeking it for sectors like defence—disregarding concernsof national security—or retail, where genuine fears, compelling argumentsand evidence abound of possible impacts on Indian livelihoods.

But the rabbit hole goes deeper. The central and various state governmentshave also been inviting foreign corporate bodies into vital areas of policyformulation and implementation—be it the involvement of a foreignconsultancy group in drafting the 12th Five Year Plan or governance reformin municipalities. Or locating the gaps in the Public Distribution System(PDS) in states. Foreign corporations are even involved in the state-levelimplementation of a grassroots programme like anganwadis. A foreignbank-sponsored foundation is being permitted by a state to run itsInstitute for Educational Research and Training.

Is it not hypocritical of a PM who invites and oversees foreign involvementin such vital sectors to question foreign support for a popularinterrogation of government policy that's risen out of people's fear fortheir lives? Isn't it like saying that foreign money—and other support—forIndia's elite is necessary and welcome, but ordinary Indians questioninghow such foreign collaborations would affect their lives and livelihoods isnot?

This hypocrisy from the head of a supposedly democratic government betraysan intolerance for democratic dissent that challenges existing powerstructures. It also smacks of an elitist mindset that seeks to protect andperpetuate these power structures. The intensity of the government'svindictiveness against certain ngos in the anti-Koodankulam nuclear plantcampaign is of the same ilk as that which was deployed, for all to see,against the members of Anna Hazare's team who launched the Lokpal agitation.

Granted, ordinary citizens and members of the so-called civil society whoquestion the government on vital issues like corruption, environment,nuclear plants or mega-dams may well have skeletons in their cupboards. Butbefore throwing the kitchen sink at them, the government must allaypeople's fears with transparent facts regarding the projects and reasonablearguments based on these facts. In Koodankulam, the government has chosenvindictiveness instead of addressing concerns about the environmentalhazards of nuclear power, radioactive waste and the persistent fear of anaccident similar to the Fukushima disaster in Japan last March.